Wisconsin warden, 8 other staffers charged after series of prisoner deaths

The warden of a troubled Wisconsin prison and eight of his staffers have been charged following an investigation into a series of prisoner deaths over the past year. “There must be accountability for the actions and inactions of state employees,” Dodge County Sheriff Dale Schmidt said. “As the sheriff, I am angered at how these men were treated and how they died.”

Jun 6, 2024 9:30 AM CDT

Judge considers fate of Wisconsin law curbing collective bargaining by public employees

A judge in Dane County, Wisconsin, is considering whether a 2011 law restricting collective bargaining by some public employees violates the state’s equal protection clause.

May 30, 2024 8:58 AM CDT

Complaint targets ABA diversity programs; claims are ‘factually and legally incorrect,’ association says

A civil rights complaint filed Tuesday with the U.S. Department of Justice alleges that at least nine ABA diversity programs discriminate on the basis of race in violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

May 23, 2024 9:35 AM CDT

Former BigLaw partner failed to pay taxes on about $3.4M in income, plea agreement says

A former partner at Husch Blackwell and Dykema Law has reached an agreement to plead guilty to failing to pay taxes on about $3.4 million in income.

May 15, 2024 9:11 AM CDT

Wisconsin bar redefines ‘diversity’ to settle challenge to clerkship program; both sides claim success

The State Bar of Wisconsin has agreed to redefine “diversity” as it applies to its Diversity Clerkship Program to settle a challenge filed by the Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty.

Apr 9, 2024 2:49 PM CDT

State Bar of Wisconsin’s diversity clerkship program ‘discriminates behind closed doors,’ suit says

The State Bar of Wisconsin is facing a lawsuit claiming that its diversity clerkship program for law students is violating the First Amendment rights of a lawyer who pays mandatory dues.

Dec 21, 2023 11:18 AM CST

Ban on approaching or recording hunters violates First Amendment, 7th Circuit says

Citing the First Amendment, a Chicago-based federal appeals court has struck down changes to a Wisconsin “hunter harassment law” that bans recording and approaching hunters.

Nov 21, 2023 9:32 AM CST

Oregon approves alternative to bar exam

Starting in 2024, law graduates aiming to practice in Oregon can skip the bar exam and instead follow an alternative pathway to licensure.

Nov 8, 2023 3:35 PM CST

25 federal district courts have always had white judges

Twenty-five out of 94 federal district courts have never had a judge of color, according to a Bloomberg Law analysis.

Sep 5, 2023 12:36 PM CDT

Write-in candidate with 2 law degrees sues to keep Trump off the ballot; different challenge tossed

A law grad with a campaign website and a plan to launch a write-in presidential candidacy has filed several lawsuits contending that former President Donald Trump is barred from running under the 14th Amendment.

Sep 5, 2023 10:12 AM CDT

Wisconsin Supreme Court chief justice condemns liberal majority for ‘hostile takeover,’ ‘unprecedented coup’

The chief justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court on Monday accused the new liberal majority of staging an “unprecedented coup.”

Aug 29, 2023 10:33 AM CDT

Meet Kenneth Chesebro, ‘the brains’ behind Trump’s fake elector scheme

A lawyer accused of crafting a fake elector strategy on behalf of former President Donald Trump was once a registered Democrat who worked after his graduation from Harvard Law School for his liberal mentor, Laurence Tribe.

Aug 17, 2023 12:59 PM CDT

Federal judge’s ‘people like you’ comments don’t require sentence reversal, 7th Circuit says

A federal judge’s comments about “people like you” weren’t the kind of inflammatory remarks that would require resentencing of a man who pleaded guilty to unlawful gun possession by a felon, a federal appeals court has ruled.

Jul 6, 2023 10:31 AM CDT

Lawyer says community service isn’t ‘viable,’ chooses jail for spitting misdemeanor

A Wisconsin lawyer chose jail over community service Tuesday for spitting on a Black teenager during a 2020 protest.

May 24, 2023 3:56 PM CDT

Lawyer who testified she spit toward but not on Black Lives Matter protester convicted; another trial awaits

A Wisconsin lawyer was convicted of misdemeanor disorderly conduct Wednesday for spitting at a 17-year-old Black Lives Matter protester in June 2020.

Apr 20, 2023 9:30 AM CDT